I'm sorry, but this man LOVES his dogs. I know because I am lucky enough to own 3 of them. He would have stayed there through the fire if it weren't for the Sheriff coming and forcing them out and his wife being ill. The whole ordeal was terrible for all of us in the breed club, and I've become very close with Tom and his wife over the past 3 years. I was hysterical for days until we knew all dogs (except for two, unfortunately) were safe and had been fed and watered by firefighters. I don't get snippy at a lot of things, but some people really need to think about what they are saying before they hit "Submit Reply."

ETA - If it were someone else's dog, it would break my heart, but I would give them back. Though I would totally try to find the owners if there was already a name associated with a microchip ASAP.

I would look for Yoshi for forever. If it had been so long I knew she wasn't around I'd still look just because I'd feel I had to know if she got to live out her life happily.

But I also have an issue with owners waiting so long. I get that you have to get your life back together. But IMO that's a FAMILY MEMBER. If they aren't part of your rebuilding process I don't think you deserve to have them back. If someone has been constantly looking for their dog I would 100% give them their dog back. I may not be happy about it but if they've really been looking that long I couldn't imagine keeping someone's heart dog away from them. If they decided to take a ton of time to get their stuff together and just randomly decided to hunt the dog down on a whim I would be completely against it.

Most people opened their home to these animals with the thoughts that they would be their forever home not that they'd be free pet care for someone else who couldn't be bothered to look for their pet as soon as possible. I do think a lot were adopted out way to fast. But I do think at some time or another you give up the rights to your pet.

For me though I would not leave Yoshi. I don't have kids or dependents so I don't have to worry about those. I've lived out of a car before to keep Yoshi. I know someone mentioned people being held at gunpoint and told to leave their pets. Honestly they'd have to shoot me. I'd rather be shot trying to stay with my dog than to leave her in the conditions those dogs were left in alone to either starve to death, get sick and die, or get shot by a random stranger during a combination of starvation or sickness.

I can't take enclosed areas with a ton of people. Hell forget enclosed areas I can't deal with large groups of people. And as horrible as it sounds I'd rather die myself then abandon Yoshi because with my anxiety/stress issues it's not like I'd be able to make it or get the help I needed anyway.

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and others told it would be a few days tops

It may just be that I'm a Chazzer. But if it was bad enough I was being evacuated or told to leave I wouldn't care if I was told it was one tops I wouldn't leave my dog there. If I have enough time to put ANYTHING in my car I have enough time to put my dog in there.

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Thank you Vivien and Angel Chicken for the siggy! Also I have been frosted!!! And as of 9/13/07 I know the secret handshake!

So, how do you tell the difference between an intact dog owned by a "casual" pet owner and one you feel is "responsible enough" for an intact dog when all you have in front of you is the intact dog? Also, being intact is NOT an untreated medical condition by ANY stretch And further, about those untreated medical conditions...if the dog has been lost for days, weeks, months...how the hell were they supposed to treat said medical conditions? They very well could have been treating them prior to the dog getting lost, or the condition could have developed WHILE the dog was lost.

This. I know that there are people out there who would automatically decide I was "irresponsible", for no reason outside the fact that my dog was intact. Implying that keeping all of his body parts is an "untreated medical issue" is a little ridiculous, although I'm willing to guess that it was just poor word placement/choice (?).

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Originally Posted by Fran101

and nobody who has never been through a disaster like hurricane katrina should really be talking about what you would have done differently. It's really easy to say things like that when you haven't been through it.
I would really suggest taking a moment to step back and realize that you don't know what these people went through or what they did or did not do to save their pets.

To say that they don't deserve their animals.. is deplorable. Completely.

What if it was between your life/your kids life or leaving your dogs? Police men telling you to leave your home at gun point? Being without food or freshwater? What if (like katrina) you didn't know it was going to get so bad, do you pack up and leave every time the weather reports say thunderstorm? What if you were lied to and told you would be back in two days? What if the area was drenched with violence,crime, little food, little freshwater, no communication.. you needed to get out.

I feel for all the victims of Katrina.. and accept that I HAVE NO IDEA what they went through or what I would/would have done in that situation.

I would go find my dog with every power I had.. but to say that I would have deserved to lose him/should leave him with new owners because in a case of national disaster I did what I could to save my life and get out safe.. is wrong.

And this, 110%. I wanted to put the parts I especially agree with in bold, but everything in this post is worth emphasizing.

I'm sorry, but this man LOVES his dogs. I know because I am lucky enough to own 3 of them. He would have stayed there through the fire if it weren't for the Sheriff coming and forcing them out and his wife being ill. The whole ordeal was terrible for all of us in the breed club, and I've become very close with Tom and his wife over the past 3 years. I was hysterical for days until we knew all dogs (except for two, unfortunately) were safe and had been fed and watered by firefighters. I don't get snippy at a lot of things, but some people really need to think about what they are saying before they hit "Submit Reply."

This is a really good point. Those with multiple dogs, especially more than 3/4, it can be difficult to be able to safely handle them all in the case of an evacuation. Mom's dog, Fez, he attacks other dogs in the car. He has bad stress response. If you are evacuating to a shelter, you also have the worry of anti-social dogs. There's a lot of factors behind 'having to leave' your dogs.

I also think that in the case of a natural disaster, if my dogs ever DID get separated from me somehow, and I found them again years later, living with someone else, I think just the sheer fact that they LIVED through all that and were safe and being cared for would make me cry tears of joy and relief. The pets that died in Katrina did not die happily, and I'd be tortured for years wondering just what happened to my dogs. I'd want them back and would try to persuade the new owners anyway I could, but knowing they were alive, loved, and being cared for would be enough for me if they declined.

The whole Katrina situation just highlights how essential it is to have a solid plan in place, especially if you have multiple animals/species (and to take what local authorities say with a grain of salt). If we had to, we could fit all the animals-2 dogs, 2 cats, 4 birds in my car, although it would be much better for everyone involved if we could take both vehicles. My mom lives one county over and 35-40 minutes away and we live in the Midwest, so in most situations we would see here we could go to her house with the critters.

I actually feel better about disaster evacuation than I did when I had a horse since I didn't have a trailer or truck.

Not blaming people who didn't have a plan, just saying that there is something to be learned here.

I also think that in the case of a natural disaster, if my dogs ever DID get separated from me somehow, and I found them again years later, living with someone else, I think just the sheer fact that they LIVED through all that and were safe and being cared for would make me cry tears of joy and relief. The pets that died in Katrina did not die happily, and I'd be tortured for years wondering just what happened to my dogs. I'd want them back and would try to persuade the new owners anyway I could, but knowing they were alive, loved, and being cared for would be enough for me if they declined.

This 100% also I would keep them updated with my contact information so that if their situation were to change that I would be the first person they would contact to take them.

This. I know that there are people out there who would automatically decide I was "irresponsible", for no reason outside the fact that my dog was intact. Implying that keeping all of his body parts is an "untreated medical issue" is a little ridiculous, although I'm willing to guess that it was just poor word placement/choice (?).

And this, 110%. I wanted to put the parts I especially agree with in bold, but everything in this post is worth emphasizing.

Didn't mean to imply those were related. Spaying/neutering is my personal preference. I don't consider someone a 'bad owner' because they have not spayed/neutered. There are other things that go along with it that usually make it a negative thing, though. Oops litters, for one thing. It's completely situational, though. Would I tell Jess to get Rosey spayed? No. I'm generally not a black and white kind of person and I didn't mean to make a blanket statement. I hardly want to argue why I think pets should be spayed/neutered, though.

Interesting things being said. A variety of dog owners. I try not to judge the Katrina victims because I've never been in that situation. Or someone who can't leave because they don't have a car. Like Fran. Not having a car would just not work here, but I don't live in a big city where you CAN walk everywhere. (Or there's public transport.)

I also don't think you're a better owner for choosing to be shot rather than leave your dog. That is a personal choice. I would prefer not to be shot, but that's just me.